NEWS FROM THE FIELD
NEWS FROM THE FIELD
Sharing news that SHCA members need to know
Saskatchewan introducing
mandatory minimum
training requirements for
commercial semi drivers
Starting March 15, 2019, drivers seeking a
Class 1 commercial licence in Saskatchewan
will be required to undergo a minimum of
121.5 hours of training.
The Government of Saskatchewan an-nounced
the change to make Saskatchewan
roads safer for commercial semi truck driv-ers
and everyone who shares the road
with them.
“Saskatchewan has been working to im-prove
standards for training curriculum
and driver testing for semi drivers since
mid-2017,” Minister responsible for SGI Joe
Hargrave said. “Our ongoing consultations
with other provinces have helped address
gaps and inconsistencies when commercial
drivers cross provincial borders. Stronger
training requirements in Saskatchewan and
across Canada will help make our province’s
and our nation’s roads safer.”
The new curriculum will include instruc-tion
in a classroom, in the yard and behind
the wheel. Training will focus on priority cur-riculum
areas including basic driving tech-niques,
professional driving habits, vehicle
inspections and air brakes. Driver’s tests will
be aligned to the curriculum ensuring more
rigour. Training schools will receive instruc-tion
and training on the new curriculum, and
the people who deliver training will be held
to higher standards.
“The Saskatchewan Trucking Association
applauds this move,” Saskatchewan Trucking
Association executive director Susan Ewart
said. “The industry is on-board with strength-ened
training requirements. Commercial
drivers play a critical role delivering goods
that keep our economy moving. Our industry
also has a responsibility to make sure com-mercial
semi drivers have the knowledge and
skills to do their job ensuring the safety of ev-eryone
on the road.”
Existing Class 1 drivers will be grandfa-thered
in as of the implementation date.
Government continues to consult with the
agricultural industry on impacts of potential
mandatory training requirements for their
sector, given these vehicles generally travel
less frequently, shorter distances and through
less densely populated areas. Effective March
15, 2019, anyone wishing to drive a semi used
in farming operations will need to success-fully
obtain an “F” endorsement on their ex-isting
driver’s licence and will be restricted
to operating within Saskatchewan’s borders.
The “F” endorsement will not be required if
they already have a Class 1 licence or have
taken the mandatory training.
Effective immediately, a 12-month safe-ty
monitoring program is being introduced
for all new semi drivers. This means, in ad-dition
to the existing monitoring that occurs
for all drivers, SGI will monitor semi drivers
more stringently for a year post-testing so re-medial
action can be taken if there are safe-ty
concerns.
Further, as of March 15, 2019, Class 1
road tests will be undertaken with SGI
examiners only.
Highest rate of job growth
in Western Canada
Saskatchewan’s year-over-year employment
increased by 16,300 jobs in November 2018,
according to Statistics Canada’s Labour Force
Survey. It was the largest job increase since
2013 and marked the fourth consecutive
month of strong job gains for the province.
Saskatchewan had the highest rate of year-over-
year job growth in Western Canada at
2.9 per cent, ranking second nationally, be-hind
Prince Edward Island.
Full-time employment increased by 10,200
jobs and part-time increased by 6,100 jobs
since this time last year. On a monthly basis,
seasonally adjusted employment increased
by 5,500 jobs from October 2018.
“The fourth consecutive month of year-over-
year job increases shows a positive trend
for our economy,” Immigration and Career
Training Minister Jeremy Harrison said. “In
spite of headwinds that our economy faces
BIALASIEWICZ / 123RF
Statistics for November 2018
show solid job growth in the
private sector with 17,500
more jobs from a year ago (+5.5
per cent) in Saskatchewan
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